Everybody that's posted on these 3 pages.....please tell me I'm not loosing my mind! I read a lot of mean comments and digs at each other here and thought perhaps I was dreaming this whole topic. But then I downloaded the 3 songs and I hear and see them on my computer. I'm not questioning the performances but I'm listening to some keyboard, I think owned by Fran, and I haven't heard such bad sounding voices and styles since my first arranger products came into my store.
It reminds me of when I used to post about how much I didn't like the Technics keyboards because I thought their cymbal sounds sounding so bad compared to the competition. Tonight, I thought the drums, the sax, the piano, etc. etc. etc. and the style were just awful. I heard glitches in the style in both songs. PLEASE tell me I'm just dreaming this whole topic up in my head. It just doesn't make sense to me that I could be listening to a modern up to date keyboard. I'm sorry if I'm offending anyone but all you have to do is listen to how poor the quality seems to be of these instruments and styles.


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George Kaye
Kaye's Music Scene
Reseda, California
818-881-5566
www.kayesmusicscene.com

nope George. You are not dreaming. apparently this is the future of arranger keyboards. I have been told by a reliable source.Apparentley he's a really nice chap and he is supplying another 300 or so of these styles for free shortly... I cant wait !

Did you actually buy the MS Fran or was it given to you to demo by Dom as rep for him ?I really dont think you need to post anymore styles as the hole being dug here in terms of the MS is probably beyond recovery anytime soon (not to mention your own judgement in the quality of musical instruments you back above others).

I tell ya , i dont understand this reverse marketing strategy at all, insult your potential customers, ignor their comprehensive and useful comments wishes and give them the poorest styles you can find for free ? No wonder there is a lifetime free updating policy with the MS ! Apparently it seems to boost oriental sales of this machine....cant see this marketing technique catching on in the west some how .....

[This message has been edited by Spalding1 (edited 12-19-2006).]

[This message has been edited by Spalding1 (edited 12-19-2006).]

I really don't understand why Fran have posted the Styles of 2 years ago and he know that he have the OLD soundbank GM 24Mb only, without the GM Realdrums...

Anyway, i make just now some new example of some styles that the other MS have basically installed and they can play too with the 64Mb GM soundbank, I think sounds here are totally different from Fran styles...
http://www.lionstracs.com/demo/styles/2006styles/16soul.mp3 http://www.lionstracs.com/demo/styles/2006styles/blues.mp3 http://www.lionstracs.com/demo/styles/2006styles/chacha10.mp3 http://www.lionstracs.com/demo/styles/2006styles/chacha6.mp3 http://www.lionstracs.com/demo/styles/2006styles/mambo1.mp3
http://www.lionstracs.com/demo/styles/2006styles/dancecar.mp3 http://www.lionstracs.com/demo/styles/2006styles/mediumr1.mp3 http://www.lionstracs.com/demo/styles/2006styles/dancefun.mp3 http://www.lionstracs.com/demo/styles/2006styles/funky12.mp3 http://www.lionstracs.com/demo/styles/2006styles/chicdance.mp3

The new styles will be available only when we will release soon the new LS 4.0, OS Update ISO 1.4, then we remap the all styles under GIGA format only.

Hi All
How about something different
A friend of mine gave me some G70 styles which he had converted using the universal styleworks program and without doing any editing, so I just thought I would post one.
All the sounds are GM (Styleworks choice)and use the OAS 6 software that was released in early 2004, (Must find time to upgrade to OAS 7) so doesn’t come close to the sounds in OAS 7, but I thought I would post it for a bit of fun, seeing as its almost Christmas.
Enjoy

Bill
http://rapidshare.com/files/8236032/Sunshine_Bossa.MP3.html

Fran,

I'm sorry my friend, but this second demo is not much better than the first.

I just had a PSR-E403(entry level) keyboard on my Yamaha sample account, it sounds much better than the Mediastation....sounded so good I nearly purchased it, but my budget wouldn't allow it at this time.

I sure hope the Mediastation gets better styles, and improved voices, or I'm afraid it will be a losing proposition in today's market.

All the best,

Ian

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Remember to leave good news alone.

For Open System Keyboard comparison, follow the link below
Enjoy

Bill
http://www.synthzone.com/ubbs/Forum37/HTML/014692.html

MUCH better demos, Domenik, but until you start to get velocity switched drums in there (presumably not used much, yet?) there is a lack of dynamics that all other high end arrangers have, especially Rolands (IMHO).

Mediumr1.mp3 is a case in point. Absolutely robotic in feel, have a listen to those snare fills. No dynamics at all, sounds like a drum machine from the 80's.

If you map that style to a good GIGA drumset, it is still going to have no dynamics. The whole point of multi-velocity drums is that no two hits sound identical. And as it gets louder, it's timbre changes. If the style has no dynamics in the first place, you are going to have to completely re-work it to stop even a GIGA kit from sounding 80's. Best to do the work now.

Have your style developer run those drum parts through a GIGA kit BEFORE he signs off on it, if that is going to be the basis for styles in the future, It will save you a lot of work down the line.

And did I get you wrong, or are you going to be able to use VST as well as GIGA for the styles in the future? Your last post only mention GIGA. I'm a huge fan of BFD, and would really like to be able to use it live!

On the whole, I thought those styles you posted were a big improvement on what Fran is posting (please stop him from messing your business up any further than he has already done!), but in all fairness, they still don't compare to the T2's or Roland G70/E80's. If you presume (probably very likely) that most potential buyers of an expensive arranger like the MS (of course we will want it fully loaded!) already have home systems capable of VST, GIGA and recording, etc., the only thing we are likely to need the MS for is to be able to go out live and do the same thing. But until the styles are BETTER than Roland and Yamaha, most of us probably consider the styles to be more important than the sound they are played through, given how good the T2 and E80 already sound, and are going to prefer great styles over great sounds.

I don't know if your eastern or middle eastern styles absolutely rock! or whether the bar never was that high in the first place, but here in the west, you have a tough job to better your competition in that primary need. Don't give it second place to any other priority. It is the ONE thing that will determine if you succeed or fail in the arranger market...

Abacus..... pretty good for a conversion (although it is using the count-off sticks instead of a real sidestick), but in all fairness (again) it didn't sound any better than my G70, despite the Abacus being nearly twice the price.

That's the nature of diminishing returns - the better the Big 3's arrangers get, the harder it is to justify paying double or more for something that only sounds 25% better (or whatever % better you think it is).

I'm also getting a little tired of the software arranger people touting 'open' systems as being the ONLY way to get improvements in their hardware. In the 16 months I've had my G70, Roland have come out with TWO major upgrades, adding several previously unthought of improvements (another mode altogether - Guitar Mode - and now the ability to put a parametric EQ on every single Part) along with numerous OS improvements and bugfixes. Not to mention minor upgrades that squashed bugs and changed some OS features at the users' requests.

I know it's not the same as OAS, but it IS a major step forward, at no cost to the user at all...... The sound of the G70 is now considerably better than when I bought it, and it works far better too (some of the OS improvements were added at the request of just one user!). So, although they are not as public about it, Roland's R&D team seem to be responsive, not Domenik's sole domain.....

Anyway, rant off! Thanks for posting, everyone. You can't make up your mind just TALKING about these things.... you have to hear it to believe it.....

By the way, I just noticed that Fran has removed every single post he made on this thread, so those of you just starting to read this thread are now just going to have to imagine the confrontational attitude he took.....

Have the guts to stand by what you post, or don't post it at all.....

If Domenik asked you to take down the examples, you could have just removed the post with the link to your demos, no need to take your ball and play somewhere else.

To Dom.

Those demos were much better than the ones fran posted. I think that they are at least useable. You must think that arranger musicians are areally tough crowd to please and tne truth is we are. I liked the styles but they were sort of lifeless in terms of dynamics as Diki has already said. One of the problems is that GM sound sets will almost always sound inferior to the proprietory sound sets of yamaha, roland and korg etc. They lack that sparkle or crispness.The guitars bass and drums in particular just screem GM. The only way you are going to be able to demo the true potential of your instrument and really convince me that the MS is the board of the future is if you use VST's and Giga instruments in the styles just like you have been saying the instrument can from the outset.

Can you tell me ( if you are still talking to me) if the new OS upgrade coming will automatically remap and eq any new styles that get imported into the MS or will the user have to do this for each and every new style that he imports?